Best Time to Visit Nainital: March to May & December to February

Peak Season: April to May & December to January

State: Uttarakhand | District: Nainital

At a distance of 66 km from Ramnagar, 294 km from Delhi and 278 km from Dehradun, Nainital is a beautiful hill station in Uttarakhand and headquarters of Nainital district in the Kumaon foothills of Himalayas. It is one of the most popular tourist places to visit in India and also one of the top places to experience Uttarakhand tourism. It is also among the popular 2 day trip near Delhi and also one of the top places to visit near Delhi.

Nainital Lake, Naina Peak and Bhimtal are among the must include places in your Nainital tour packages. Nainital is famous for its scenic mountain views and is commonly known as the Lake District of India. Situated at an altitude of 1938 m, Nainital derives its name from Naini Lake. The highest point is Naina Peak or China Peak, with an elevation of 2,615 m. Nainital is surrounded by mountains on three sides and the town is spread around the beautiful Naini lake.

Nainital was founded by a European businessman Percy Barron in 1841 and later it became summer retreat for the British who spent summers in these hills to escape the extreme hot weather of the plains. The British government built several schools and colleges in the region. This place is named after Naina Devi Temple, which is dedicated to Shakti, a form of Parvati.

Nainital is a famous tourist destination of India, attracting large number of domestic and foreign tourists every year. Some of the important places in Nainital are Naina Peak, Nainital Lake, Naina Devi Temple, Mall, Raj Bhavan, High Altitude Zoo, Bhimtal and Sattal. Naini Lake has facilities for boating and yachting. Facilities for horse riding, skating, golf and rock climbing are also available for the visitors. Nainital is also famous for its various schools and research facilities. The Observatory or The Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) is the center for astronomical studies and optical tracking of artificial satellites.

Pantnagar Airport (68 km) is the nearest airport to Nainital which has direct flights from Delhi. Kathgodam Railway Station is the nearest railway station, which is 24 km from Nainital. It is well connected with Moradabad, Delhi, Lucknow, Jammu Tawi, Kanpur, Dehradun, Jaisalmer and Howrah. Nainital is well connected by Road with Delhi, Haldwani, Dehradun and Rampur. Regular buses can fly from Kathgodam to Nainital.

The best time to visit Nainital is from March to May & December to February. The hill station receives snowfall during the winter months from December to February, which receives the maximum number of tourists.

Distance Chart

Top 11 Places to Visit in Nainital

At a distance of 1.5 km from Tallital Bus Stand, Nainital Lake is a natural freshwater lake, situated amidst the main town of Nainital. Nainital Lake is one of the prime places to visit in Nainital town. The lake is most commonly represented to promote Nainital Tourism.

According to the history, this lake was built in 1839 by P. Barron at an altitude of 2,000 m. This is one of the four lakes of Kumaon hills, the other three lakes are Sattal Lake, Bhimtal Lake and Naukuchiyatal Lake. Nainital Lake is lunar-shaped and has an outlet at the southeastern end. The lake covers a perimeter of 2 miles with a depth varies from 6 m to 28 m. Northern part of the lake is called as Mallital while southern part known as Tallital. Balia Nala is the main feeder-stream of the lake. Other than this, 26 major drains, including the three perennial ones, feed it. It is surrounded .....

At a distance of 10 km from Tallital Bus Stand, Naina Peak, also known as China Peak, is the highest peak and a famous attraction in the town of Nainital. A trek to Naina Peak is one of the top things to do in Nainital and is among prime place to visit on a Nainital trip.

Naina Peak is situated at an altitude of 2615 m. The peak was renamed from China peak to Naina peak after the 1962 war with China. Due to high altitude and lush green forest path, Naina Peak is also a favorite place in Nainital for trekking. This highest point of this mountain is widely known for its amazing natural surroundings and the snow covered mountains all around. Naina Peak is a quiet place from where the Nanda Devi peak and the mountains on the Tibet border can be viewed.

The peak offers breathtaking views of the surrounding peaks. The trek to Naina Peak is little .....

At a distance of 2 km from Tallital Bus Stand, The Naina Devi Temple is situated on northern end of the Nainital Lake near the Nainital Boat House Club in Nainital.

The presiding deity of the temple is Goddess Naina Devi represented by two eyes. According to the legend, Naina Devi Temple is the place where eyes from burned body of Goddess Sati fall when her corpse was being carried by Lord Shiva. The word Naina is synonymous with Sati's eyes. The temple is one the main places to visit in Nainital.

It is said that the current temple at Nainital actually replaces the original 15th century temple. In 1842, a devotee Moti Ram Shah installed an idol of Naina Devi. A major landside has destroyed the temple completely in 1880. Naina Devi temple was replaced by the present structure in 1883.

Inside the temple, devotees have darshan of three deities. On the extreme left is Mata Kali Devi, the center .....

At a distance of 22 km from Nainital & 12 km from Bhimtal, Sattal or Sat Tal is a cluster of seven inter-connected freshwater lakes located in Nainital district. At an altitude of 1,370 m, it is one of the most scenic places around Nainital and also one of the popular Uttarakhand tourist places.

The group of lakes is set amidst dense forests of oak and pine trees. Sattal is one of the few unspoiled and unpolluted fresh water bodies in India. This is often compared with Westmoreland of England by British. The names of the seven lakes of Sattal are Purna Tal, Ram Tal, Sita Tal, Laxman Tal, Nal Damyanti Tal, Sukh Tal and Garud Tal. The Garud Tal is a solitary lake and is not interconnected. The Ram, Sita and Lakshman Tal all together form the Sattal main Lake.

At a distance of 20 km from Nainital and 11 km from Sattal, Bhimtal is a picturesque lake located in the town of Bhimtal in Nainital district. It is situated at an altitude of 1,370 m and is one of the major places of sightseeing near Nainital. Bhimtal is older than the Nainital city as it was once part of the ancient silk route. The town and the lake are named after Bhima, one of the Pandavas of the epic story of Mahabharata who is said to have visited the place during the exile period of the Pandavas. This is another popular attraction not to miss in a Nainital tour package.

Bhimtal is the largest lake in Kumaon region and situated amidst lush green mountains. The lake is of 1701 m length, 451 m width and depth of 18 m. It is spread across 63.25 hectares of area. The Victoria dam was built on this Lake in 1883 when Kumaon region was under the British Raj. Bhimtal offers splendid .....

At a distance of 1 km from Tallital Bus Station, Mall Road is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Nainital. It connects the North and South West corner of Nainital Lake known as Mallital and Tallital and runs parallel to Nainital Lake. Shopping in Mall Road is one of the top activities in Nainital.

The Mall Road was constructed during the British colonial rule. This is the main commercial area which runs through the heart of the Nainital town. The Mall road is now named as Govind Ballabh Pant Marg. The road has a number of Hotels, Banks, Showrooms, Department Stores, Shops, Restaurants and Cafes. It is a cluster of many small shops offering varied products.

Visitors can enjoy their leisurely evening stroll on the Mall Road, with a cool refreshing breeze blowing across the lake on to the road adding to the charm of the Mall. During summers, this road becomes crowded with locals and tourists enjoying the evening weather.

At a distance of 5 km from Tallital Bus Stand, Tiffin Top also known as Dorothy's Seat is located in Ayarpatta Hill of Nainital. This is the second highest peak in Nainital after China Peak.

Situated at an altitude of about 2,290 m, Tiffin Top is a famous vantage point in the scenic hill station of Nainital. It is one of the most famous among Nainital places to visit. It is also one of the best places for short trekking in Nainital. This place is named after Dorothy Kellet, an English Painter, who died in a plane crash. Tiffin Top is a stonework bench built in the memory of Dorothy Kellet by her husband J.P. Kellet. This was the place where she used to sit and paint the beautiful town and its surroundings. Later, it started becoming a famous picnic spot for the Rajas who ruled this place and hence was officially converted into a picnic spot and locally named Tiffin top which denotes packed food consumed during the day.

At a distance of 1.5 km from Tallital Bus Stand, G.B. Pant High Altitude Zoo is a high altitude zoo situated in Nainital. It is one of the popular Nainital tourist places and is one of the three High Altitude Zoo Parks in North India, apart from those in Darjeeling and Sikkim.

The Zoo was established in 1984 and is spread over an area of 11 acres. It is situated on the Sher Ka Danda hill at an altitude of 2,100 m (6,900 feet) and is the only zoo in Uttarakhand. The Zoo was opened to visitors on 1st June 1995 and is managed by Bharat Ratna Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant High Altitude Zoo Management Society, Nainital from 1st March 2002.

The Zoo was established with the objective to conserve and protect the wildlife and biodiversity of the hill region of Uttarakhand. The zoo has several endangered species of animals in the Himalayas and animals like snow leopard, Tibetan wolf, Japanese Macaque, Sambar, .....

At a distance of 3 km from Tallital Bus Stand & 2 km from Nainital Lake, Snow View Point is one of the most beautiful places in Nainital and also among the most visited Nainital tourist places.

Situated at an altitude of 2,270 m, Snow view point offers excellent views of snowcapped mountains like Nanda Devi, Trishul and Nanda Kot. It also offers great views of Nainital Lake and the town. Snow view point is well connected by road but a ride in aerial ropeway from Mallital is the best way to reach this place.

In order to provide a perfect view to visitors, a pair of huge binoculars is installed at this spot. A small temple housing images of Rama, Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman with Durga and Shiva is located on the peak. The Tibetan monastery Gadhan Kunkyop Ling Gompa of the Gelukpa order situated near Snow view point is also a must visit spot. An early morning trek to this place gives some of the best .....

At a distance of 17 km from Nainital and 8 km from Bhowali, Kainchi Dham is a religious pilgrimage center located at Kainchi on the Nainital - Almora Road in Uttarakhand. The word Kainchi means two sharp hairpin bends in a local dialect and hence the name. It is one of the well known temples of Uttarakhand state and one of the top places to visit in Nainital. Famous visitors of the temple include Apple founder Steve Jobs and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. This is another popular attraction not to miss in a Nainital tour package.

Kainchi is a beautiful secluded shrine and is famous for the Hanuman Mandir. The ashram is situated at an altitude of 1400 m. In 1962, Neem Karoli Baba built a platform around a place where two spiritual gurus Sadhu Premi Baba and Sombari Maharaj had performed Yagyas in .....

At a distance of 4 km from Ramnagar Railway Station, 65 km from Nainital, 232 km from Dehradun, and 261 km from Delhi, Jim Corbett National Park is India's oldest and most popular National Park situated in Nainital district of Uttarakhand. The Park acts as a protection zone for Bengal Tigers of India. It is one of the wellknown Uttarakhand tourist places and among the best places to visit near Delhi.

Corbett National Park was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park. After India's independence the park was named as Ramganga National Park but later in 1956, it was renamed after Jim Corbett - the famous hunter turned conservationist and author, who played a major role in the establishment of the national park. The area came under Project Tiger in 1973. Spread over an area of about 520 sq. km, out of which 330 sq. km forms the core area. .....